2022-10-27 Ordinary Meeting Minutes

ORDINARY MEETING MINUTES   27 OCTOBER 2022




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ORDINARY MEETING MINUTES                                                            27 OCTOBER 2022

        ’               Attachment 2 - Item 7 - Deputation
                      Delegation to Noosa Shire Council — Coastal Reserve Encroachment
                      27 October 2022
                      Good evening and thank you for the opportunity to speak tonight.

                      My name is Chris Hansen, and | am a consultant ecologist specialising in flora
                      ecology and | am here to provide a brief summation of the importance of dune
                      ecosystems and the threats to dune vegetation that impact their long-term
                      stability and viability.

                      The shoreline, our beaches, change naturally over time. They can be subjected
                      to gradual recession or accretion, while at times they are markedly impacted by
                      major storm events such as east coast lows or the remnants of tropical cyclones.
                     The incipient or beachside dune, where present, and the seaward face of the
                     foredune are critical components of the dune ecosystem as they provide a
                      reservoir of sand that helps replenish the beach following erosion events, and
                     they act as a barrier against tidal surges, waves, and saltwater intrusion.
                      However, the dune ecosystem also includes the landward side of the foredune,
                     swales and hind dunes, which work collaboratively to provide an important
                     morphological   and   ecological  transition from   marine   to  terrestrial
                     environments.

                     Dune vegetation, which is widely recognised as an integrated system providing
                     floristic diversity and habitats for fauna, can be analogised as a resilient shelter.
                     The flora species within the primary zone colonise lower parts of the beach and
                     trap abrasive sand particles forming a “foundation”. The foredune represents
                     an elevated “wall” that can be colonised by secondary zone species to provide a
                     wind deflecting “awning” near the shoreline. Finally, a “roof” forms from the
                     growth of tertiary species, further elevating the wind and providing increased
                     shelter to vegetation (and indeed housing) further inland. Figure 1 provides a
                     schematic representation of the collaboration of these vegetation elements.

                     The effectiveness of dune plants in stabilising dunes and resisting erosion is well
                     understood and generally regarded as their primary value. Dune vegetation,
                     which also provides landscape aesthetic, and minimises property losses and
                     damage due to sand drift, is critical in maintaining coastal sediment budgets and
                     shoreline stability.

                     HBA                                                                       1

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